Living Without Abuse (LWA)
Privacy and Confidentiality Statement
Service Delivery
LWA is committed to ensuring that your privacy is protected.
This short statement explains how we process your personal data whenever you access any of the services provided by LWA. This privacy policy sets out how LWA uses and protects any information that you give to us.
What personal data is collected and held?
We collect your personal data in order to deliver our services to you. This includes all your relevant contact details, including name, address, date of birth, email address, and telephone number(s). However, in order to deliver specific services to you we also collect personal data of a sensitive nature, including about your relevant personal circumstances (such as children’s details, relationship status, sex, race, disability, sexual orientation), and your physical and mental health.
The data we collect is provided either directly by you, or by a referring agency on your behalf.
How is this data used?
We use your data to:
- Assess your individual circumstances and the most appropriate service to be provided;
- Provide support, counselling or other services to you;
- Make relevant referrals to other agencies for support; and
- Carry out administration, evaluation and case reporting.
If you are aged under 16, we may seek the consent of the parent/guardian or other responsible adult, unless this would put you at risk.
Storing and Protecting Your Data
We store your data on a secure cloud-based case management database. Access to personal data is strictly controlled and protected by appropriate physical and cyber security measures.
Sharing or Transfer of data
LWA is part of the UAVA consortium, and authorised employees of the organisations in the consortium (FreeVA, Women’s Aid Leicestershire Ltd, and Living Without Abuse) may access your personal data if required. If you have been referred to us by an agency (such as Social Services) we will report back to that agency on your progress, change of circumstance or any other relevant information disclosed whilst under referral to us. Your personal data may also be shared, with your consent, with any other organisation contracted to provide a confidential service for LWA and with commissioners of the service from the local authority.
All UAVA members and other relevant organisations will keep your personal data confidential and it will not be shared or transferred to anyone else unless there is a genuine concern that either you, or another person (or child), is in danger. Where this is the case we will inform the appropriate agency and take appropriate action to protect you or the other person (or child). Usually we will inform you in advance of taking such a step, but we can in exceptional circumstances, do this legally without your consent.
We will, if requested, also provide a client’s information to the Police or to an appropriate lawyer where legal proceedings have started or are being considered. We will seek your consent to do this unless the request is a court order legally requiring us to share data.
Please be assured your personal data will never be sold, rented or traded.
Website
Any information we ask you to provide when using this website by which you can be identified will only be used in accordance with this privacy statement.
What we collect
- Name
- Contact information including phone and email address
What we do with the information we gather
- To arrange services for you.
- Internal record keeping.
- We may use the information to improve our services.
Security
How we use cookies
A cookie is a small file which asks permission to be placed on your computer’s hard drive. Once you agree, the file is added and the cookie helps analyse web traffic or lets you know when you visit a particular site. Cookies allow web applications to respond to you as an individual. The web application can tailor its operations to your needs, likes and dislikes by gathering and remembering information about your preferences.
We use traffic log cookies to identify which pages are being used. This helps us analyse data about webpage traffic and improve our website in order to tailor it to customer needs. We only use this information for statistical analysis purposes and then the data is removed from the system. Overall, cookies help us provide you with a better website, by enabling us to monitor which pages you find useful and which you do not. A cookie in no way gives us access to your computer or any information about you, other than the data you choose to share with us.
You can choose to accept or decline cookies. Most web browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser setting to decline cookies if you prefer. This may prevent you from taking full advantage of the website.
Links to other websites
Our website may contain links to other websites of interest. However, once you have used these links to leave our site, you should note that we do not have any control over that other website. Therefore, we cannot be responsible for the protection and privacy of any information which you provide whilst visiting such sites and such sites are not governed by this privacy statement. You should exercise caution and look at the privacy statement applicable to the website in question.
We will not sell, distribute or lease your personal information to third parties.
General Data Protection Regulation
For the lawful basis for processing your personal data we are relying on our legitimate interest to provide services (dealing with general enquiries, assessment, referral and delivery); and also upon your consent (sensitive data, referrals outside of UAVA). Where you have consented to provide personal data you have a right to withdraw this consent at any time by contacting us. In such cases this may limit the level or type of service that we can provide for you.
Under the General Data Protection Regulation, you have a number of data rights including a right to information, to access, to have errors rectified, to restrict and to object to data processing.
Transparency and further information
You have the right to access your data and associated file notes. To request access to your data please contact us, in writing, to do this contact info@lwa.org.uk.
Information and advice on enforcing your rights is available from the Information Commissioner’s Office Helpline: 0303 123 1113
LWA may change this policy from time to time by updating this page. You should check this page from time to time to ensure that you are happy with any changes. This policy is effective from 01/06/2021.